MONTREAL - There are some Montreal chefs who always seem to be in the spotlight. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, because if they’re out there, it’s probably because they want to be there. Yet many excellent chefs fly under the radar, and I cannot deny I am even more impressed with those who manage to garner raves without glad-handing a path through the dining room come service time. Several names come to mind, but first and foremost is Claude Pelletier. Chef/partner of the excellent Le Club Chasse et Pêche, Pelletier has been on the scene for the past 20 years preparing some of the best restaurant food imaginable.

When he paired up with a group of partners, including Hubert Marsolais, at Cube back in 2001, Montrealers welcomed Pelletier’s bold and modern cuisine, which continued when he and Marsolais opened Chasse et Pêche and then, with more partners, the wildly successful Le Filet. When word came a year back that he and Marsolais, along with the group’s head sommelier, Philippe Boisvert, were to open a new restaurant, the foodies went into a tizzy. It would be located in the Darling Foundry in the space that last housed the funky lunch bar Cluny. The chef Pelletier chose would be the oh-so-talented Michele Mercuri. How promising!

After a long period of renovations, the restaurant finally opened on New Year’s Eve. It is called Le Serpent — a nickname the building had picked up, I was told, due to the snakelike ventilation system on the roof. The menu was Italianate in style, without delving into any promises of regional authenticity. Mercuri is a real talent, who earned a four-star rating in these pages when he was chef at the posh XO restaurant in the St. James Hotel. He is a creative cook with a meticulous plating style, yet the intention here was not to create a high-end restaurant, but a bistro. Le Serpent already does a brisk lunch business, and is also the exclusive caterer for the Darling Foundry contemporary art centre in the building. Banquet planners, take note: there is a large reception/gallery space alongside the dining room, which seats 200 (up to 600 in cocktail mode).

Despite all the buzz when it opened, not all feedback was positive. Though the first reviews I read were strong, a few foodie friends warned that the kitchen perhaps wasn’t ready for a review. One person went so far as to say, “I just didn’t understand the food.” Not what I’d call a ringing endorsement.

So I entered Le Serpent cautious on the first occasion, but exited pretty impressed. The decor is very stylish, with a black and white colour scheme, towering ceilings, tall windows and one terrific bar parallel to the kitchen. The acoustics are so well thought out that in this relatively noisy room, you’ll have no problem making conversation. The floor staff is young, attractive, smiley and very sharp. On both my visits, the urban-chic crowd donned their best black. This restaurant is pretty darn cool.

The menu is divided into raw and cooked appetizers, pastas, risottos, fish and meats. There’s also a section called “à la broche” (rotisserie) that changes daily. Desserts are made by the Chasse et Pêche/Le Filet pastry chef, Masami Waki.

The wine list is another big draw, as prices are reasonably set at less than double retail. Considering most restaurants charge 2½ to three times retail, that’s one sweet deal. The selection, chosen by Boisvert, is exceptional, with many private imports and biodynamic bottles, as well as a solid choice of wines by the glass. You’re in for a treat if Boisvert serves you, because he’s just so open and unpretentious about wine, and the waitress who served me on another occasion knew the list well and helped guide us to a few winners.

As for the food, I felt a few stumbles here and there, but the hits were very strong. My first dish, a confit of Arctic char, was a miss. I liked the fennel garnish and the green apple and fennel pollen accents, but the fish was too raw. And thickly cut as it was, the flesh had a mushy mouthfeel.

A dish featuring beef tongue looked fantastic. Laid out on a large plate in a triangle, the tongue slices were topped with squid rings and spiders, celery, capers and other little doodads. Yet as much as I loved the tongue, the squid was rubbery. Hmm.

Happily, the next course wowed. A beautiful pasta made with linguine, cauliflower, speck, almonds and plenty of chopped truffle, the dish was so scrumptious and perfectly executed (cooked to al-dente perfection) that we wolfed it down in seconds. Then came the orzotto (rice-shaped orzo pasta cooked risotto style), which was mixed with bits of braised veal shank and topped with a mound of shaved foie gras. It’s a dish similar to the Chasse et Pêche classic risotto with suckling pig and foie gras shavings, and it’s just as delicious.

I like Mercuri’s cooking when he gets into these complex pastas with earthy or meaty flavours so ideally suited to the many Italian red wines on offer.

But just when dinner was looking up, along came the rotisserie Cornish game hen. Served in pieces on a large plate (generous enough for two), the bird was silky and succulent, but the skin was coated with a glossy barbecue sauce that not only robbed the skin of its crisp texture, but added nothing but sweetness to the mix. Dommage.

For dessert, we enjoyed a fabulous tiramisu with a sabayon-like filling that was topped with a shot of espresso right at the table. Then came a maple pudding with an interesting olive cookie and caramelized apple served in a verrine. Excellent — as was the little hazelnut and chocolate mousse cake crowned with tiny macaron served in a pool of custard cream. All good.

At lunch a few days later, it was even better. A pretty beet salad mixed with spicy pecans, parsnip chips and tangerine segments was a treat, though there was a lot of sweetness in the mix. A dish of poached octopus slices served with salsa verde and a sort of parachute of potato mousseline was also fine, if a bit oily. My main-course dish of porchetta with a slice of burrata and wild mushrooms was delectable, and the garganelli (twirly ribbed pasta) with duck sausage, borlotti beans, kale and carrots was hearty without being too filling. That said, a little more sauce would have helped tie all the elements together.

As we finished with a slice of excellent chocolate cake and a couple of good coffees, I looked around this great, bright room, the crowd thinning out as customers drifted back to work. There are small fixes to make in the food — too many dishes have a sweet edge — but on the whole, for a bistro restaurant from this team, I’m impressed. This low-key group of cooks and restaurateurs seems to have yet another hit on its hands. The others can continue to hog the spotlight. These guys don’t seem to need it.

You can hear Lesley Chesterman on ICI Radio-Canada Première’s Médium Large (95.1 FM) Tuesdays at 10 a.m., and on CHOM (97.7 FM) Wednesdays at 7:10 a.m.

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